Tag Archives: Sasha Banks

Yep.

Giving their thoughts and predictions on what to expect from the PPV are members of the site @JoeyOnEarth, @TomBlargh and @OrinAnne. @TimWelcomed refuses to be involved in this post because he didn’t want to sully his good reputation by writing “balls” a lot.

Neville vs. Akira Tozawa for the Cruiserweight Championship on the kick off

Joey:

Neville is still the best thing in the cruiserweight division and there’s no way they can take the title off him now. The Tozawa story with the Titus Worldwide Brand is great stuff. I love Titus playing the LaVar Ball of the cruiserweight division. Tozawa/Neville is one of the better cruiserweight bouts we’ve yet to see, so this should be fun! I expect Neville to retain as he’s probably not losing until Kalisto joins the division.

Interest Level: 8/10Prediction: Neville wins

Tom:

I’m not very interested in this show at all so I’m just going to get my wife @Sydneyb79 to help with some fantastic predictions. Take it away, Sydney!

Sydney: “Well we like Neville… who the fuck is the second guy? I’m going to Google him. *gets her laptop* Akira… Tozawa. Oh, okay. Well, he has some fun shorts in his Wikipedia profile picture so that’s why he gets my vote.”

Interest Level: 7/10Prediction: Tozawa wins.

Orin:

Is Akira “Titus Worldwide” Tozawa on the Neville Level? Will Titus O’Neal’s newest recruit to the Titus Brand have what it takes to dethrone the King of the Cruiserweights? No matter what happens, one thing is for sure: these two Cruserweight Superstars are sure to show the world what their balls are made of. I can’t wait to find out what happens tonight on WWE’s Great Balls of Fire pay-per-view, presented by Rocket League.

Interest Level: 10/10Prediction: A dream match for the ages.

Enzo Amore vs. Big Cass

Joey:

Big Cass beating the hell out of Enzo Amore is a lovely thing to witness. Their segments against each other still feel odd. Hopefully the match starts to set them apart and get the story going. Enzo did a great job on Raw this week. Good for him but hopefully Cass throws his ass off the stage.

Mama Mia! Enzo’s balls are sure to be full of a spicy marinara, but I’m not sure that he has what it takes to pull out a big win tonight on the award winning WWE network. I can’t wait to witness this emotional confrontation between the self-proclaimed The Realest Guys in the Room. When the dust clears, who will come out on top? There’s only one way to find out and that’s by tuning in on your internet-enabled device LIVE tonight.

Interest Level: 10/10Prediction: A LIVE matchup brought to you by Rocket League.

I’m a big fan of three of these guys but I’m not expecting much from it since it’s a pre-show match. Akira Tozawa and his charisma have been a gift to the cruiserweight division. His storyline with Kendrick is the best thing in the division outside of Neville’s heel reign. Noam Dar is such a bore. I can’t believe he gets as much air time as he does. Swann still hasn’t found his spot but I’m hoping that changes one day soon. Anyway, this’ll be a nice little pre-show match.

Interest Level: 4/10Prediction: Swann and Tozawa win.

Tom:

Tozawa has been so exciting in his limited time on WWE TV, to the point that I badly want him to shift out of the Cruiserweight division so he’s not just limited to wrestling the guys there. However, I can live with it for the time-being. I like all of the guys in this match to various degrees, so even though it’s a TV match, I’m sure it’ll be fine. Also, big laffs at TJP not even making kickoff shows now.

Interest Level: 6/10Prediction: Tozawa and Swann win.

Sasha Banks vs. Nia Jax

Joey:

No interest in this feud. I definitely think Nia Jax wins in dominant fashion to remain strong and set up Sasha Banks’ frustration and anger for something later in the show.

This is something I just haven’t been able to connect with. Nia Jax just isn’t that great in her role. Best case scenario for this match to be anything worth seeing is Jax dominating most of it and Banks selling over the top for her in crazy ways. I would think Jax gets the win here.

The road is blocked.

Big Cass vs. Rusev

Joey:

Everyone ragged on Big Cass for the pants comment on Raw last week, but I thought he looked great on his own. Enzo Amore has become my least favorite person on Raw. Cass on his own has me interested in him again. I’m looking forward to this match. My expectations are sadly Enzo returning to help Cass in between dancing like a scumbag. Hopefully Lana throws him off the stage.

Interest Level: 6/10Prediction: Cass wins.

Tim:

The build has been horrendous but maybe the match will make up for the weeks of making me want to change the channel. I like Big Cass a lot even though some of his promo work is cheesy. He’s a real asset to the roster. He stands out and is an entertaining tall guy in the ring. He and Rusev are both inconsistent but hopefully they have some chemistry. I’m pretty curious to see how they work together. I’d bet Big Cass gets the win here with help from his pal, horny Scrappy Doo. Just remember: Rusev is the good guy as usual.

Interest Level: 5/10Prediction: Big Cass wins.

Tom:

IT’S A ROADBLOCK, BABY, DRIVE ME CRAZY. I think this might be okay. The storyline’s been trash but Rusev is still fairly fun and I like seeing Big Cass be a tall man doing tall man things. Big boots and so on.

I enjoyed 205 Live a lot this week. The triple threat match is the most I’ve look forward to a cruiserweight match since the move to the main roster. Rich Swann is wonderful and definitely the right choice to be champion. Hopefully this is the final PPV title shot for Kendrick or Perkins for a while with someone new getting an opportunity. Unfortunately the depth is pretty weak. Maybe Tajiri returns to spit mist in TJP’s sexist eyes.

Interest Level: 8/10Prediction: Rich Swann wins.

Tim:

I still haven’t been grabbed by the Cruiserweights but this being a three way gives me hope for it to be more intriguing than past Cruiserweight matches. I think they did a little better with the build than they have for previous Cruiserweight title matches but they still have a long ways to go. Rich Swann is awesome. I’m glad he’s the champion and I think that will continue for awhile longer. Can I see Tozawa now?

Interest Level: 4/10Prediction: Rich Swann wins.

Tom:

I still like Kendrick a lot but TJP continues to do nothing for me and I’d rather Swann have someone fresh to scrap with. Is Gran Metallik not available? Are they saving him for something? What about Tozawa or Tajiri? I don’t know if rationing the fun guys out is their plan, but man, the division could really use some other guys being showcased.

It’s a cell full of hell.

Cedric Alexander, Lince Dorado and Sin Cara vs. Tony Nese, Drew Gulak and Ariya Daivari on the kick off show

Joey:

The cruiserweight division has been okay. Cedric Alexander and Rich Swann have been the most exciting stars. Tony Nese, Drew Gulak and Ariya Daivari feel like the jobber unit of the division. Cedric’s team is pretty cool here. Sin Cara and Lince Dorado looked good in that tag match a few weeks ago. Good choice for a pre-show match, but I wish Swann was involved.

Interest Level: 7/10Prediction: Team Cedric wins.

Tim:

For a division that gets different ring ropes every time they wrestle and came fresh off one of the best tournaments I’ve ever seen, the Cruiserweight Division has been pretty underwhelming. Cedric Alexander is a top-tier wrestler so I’m always excited to see him do his thing. Tony Nese looks alright once every six months or so. Gulak can either be really boring or really good but he will always wear that garbage jacket to the ring, so I don’t know what to think. This should be a fun pre-show match but we’ll just have to see. There have been numerous cruiserweight matches on Raw that I would have put money on being good beforehand only to lose that money and my big ass boat.

Interest Level: 4/10Prediction: Alexander and The Lucha Cats win and then form a band.

Tom:

I made a face when I saw this match and I’m not sure why! Like, I GUESS this is why we have the cruiserweight lads, to have fun, meaningless matches with flips and Drew Gulak’s terrible jacket? I just wish we could do a little better. Also, where’s Rich Swann? People actually seem to like him.

Interest Level: 6/10Prediction: Cedric and pals win.

Bayley vs. Dana Brooke

Joey:

Dana Brooke may very well be the worst wrestler in the world but in a good way. Bayley clearly needs the win here. The Survivor Series team match will help prolong her eventual build to the WrestleMania title shot against Sasha Banks and/or Charlotte.

Interest Level: 3/10 (Sorry, Bayley.)Prediction: Bayley wins.

Tim:

I get a big kick out of watching Dana Brooke do anything but I’d rather watch Bayley wrestle anyone else on a big event. We like to have fun here but I prefer good matches to having a laugh. Heck, I like good matches that make me laugh a lot too but those don’t happen often at all. Bayley has to go over here. It has been a rough month for everyone on Raw but especially Bayley. She took a clean L from Brooke when she messed up the cheating finish and then got “boring” chants thrown at the segment she was in the next week. That is wild stuff to happen to one of the best and none of it should really fall on her shoulders. Hopefully she gets into a good feud next month. This one was a huge miscalculation.

Interest Level: 1/10Prediction: Bayley wins.

Tom:

HELL YEAH, DANA BROOKE. I wish Dana had the “I’m not like most girls” theme song, except it should be expanded to be “I’m not like most people” because I don’t think there’s anyone else on the planet like Brookesy. Almost everything she does makes me laugh and I am excited to see what she does.

P.S. Yes, I feel bad for Bayley too, but at least we get to see Dana being crazy.

Belts.

Nia Jax vs. Alicia Fox on the kickoff show

Joey:

Nia Jax squashing local talents really helped introduce her on Raw. The segment with her throwing around Alicia Fox a few weeks ago was quite entertaining. Nothing but love for Foxy who judged a pizza eating contest with Big Show in Brooklyn last month. Respect was earned.

Interest Level: 3/10Prediction: Nia Jax wins.

Tim:

I’ve never really found Nia Jax appealing until she did the beatdown on Alicia Fox. Fox, who has been supremely underutilized for most of her career, really sold Jax as a beast. I want more of that here but I’m expecting it will just be a boring pre-show match.

Interest Level: 3/10Prediction: Nia Jax

Tom:

The stipulation should be Nia Jax gets Foxy’s place on Total Divas if she wins. I have no other thoughts.

TJ Perkins is a real goof, but he has been unbelievable in the ring over the past few months. The Brian Kendrick added more emotion to the Cruiserweight Classic than anyone else. This was the right match to put on the PPV. I’m rooting for Kendrick but TJP is definitely pulling off the win to start a credible reign.

Interest Level: 8/10Prediction: TJ Perkins wins.

Tim:

I was at work the other day and the janitor was cleaning up near me. I looked at him as he was throwing a Capri Sun pouch away and said “you should throw TJP away while you’re at it.” He didn’t know what I was talking about and seemed kind of scared but if he was a wrestling fan he would have died laughing or at least smirked at me knowingly. TJP has always been pretty good in the ring and seems to be rolling at a whole new pace now. Kendrick was my favorite character in the CWC and brought that emotional weight to all of his matches in the tournament. That run pretty much exemplified what I want from wrestling. TJP is most definitely winning here (as he should) but I’ll be rooting for Kendrick. This is an exciting one.

Interest Level: 7/10Prediction: TJ Perkins wins.

Tom:

I don’t like really like TJP as a person or a wrestler! I know everyone seems very high on him this year, but he just doesn’t really do much for me on any level. However, Brian Kendrick is fantastic and I look forward to him slapping old TJ around for a while. I’m even going to predict that Kendrick wins, because I love being set up for disappointment!

I’m going to take this time to say this whole Sami Zayn being in a thrown together tag match on the pre-show thing is incredibly lame. He’s had a great year in the ring and won his biggest match to date in my favorite match of the year so far just last month. All of that and this is where he’s at? You could’ve been creative and somehow worked into him and Owens tagging for a while instead of Jericho or something. ANYTHING. If this is what you were going to do with him why not just let Owens beat him again?

The Dudleyz are for the trash and I don’t want to watch two great wrestlers take on boring garbage people in a pre-show match. They’ve done nothing interesting since they’ve returned to the company. I’m pissed! I’m letting the world know.

Cesaro vs. Sheamus (Match 1 in their Best of Seven series)

Joey:

There’s nothing wrong with either man and they have decent matches. The problem is it gets extremely repetitive and we all know this will likely culminate in nothing. I can’t say I’m overly excited but it could be good. They have to put this in the opening slot or on the pre-show while the crowd is still hot.

Interest Level: 5/10Prediction: Sheamus wins.

Tim:

These two are awesome wrestlers. They really are… but Sheamus can suck the life out of me despite that. It is some sort of weird magic he has. It doesn’t help that I’ve seen them wrestle more times than I ever needed to. The story hasn’t been compelling at all. They threw in Zayn beating Sheamus for some reason. It’s just strange. We have six more of these to go. I’d rather Cesaro be doing bigger and better things at this point. It just seems like a roadblock and not a match I can be excited about despite wanting to be.

Interest Level: 3/10Prediction: Cesaro wins.

Tom:

It’s hard to comprehend this being their first match in a best of seven series because it already feels like they’ve wrestled enough that there shouldn’t be too much question about who the better guy is. IT’S CESARO, LADS. EVERYONE KNOWS THIS.

Speaking of which, it’s testament to how great Cesaro is that I have any interest in this at all!

We didn’t have time to collaborate this week.

It’s just @JoeyOnEarth with a quick preview for the big NXT show this week. I suggest you tweet the T-Boyz asking for their interest levels on Dana Brooke vs. Asuka!

EDIT: IT’S THE BIG DOG HERE WITH A LAST MINUTE RUN-IN AFTER JOEY TRIED TO SHAME ME FOR LIKING DANA BROOKE.

EDIT 2:The T Man took time out of his VERY busy schedule to pop in for a second.

Apollo Crews vs. Tyler Breeze

Joey:

This match makes sense considering Apollo Crews is on the rise and Tyler Breeze is one of the more consistent wrestlers on the roster. I think we’re reaching a point with Breeze where he’s either being called up to the main roster soon or he’s going to become “just another guy” in NXT. Aside from his entrance, he’s kind of getting there already. Crews has looked impressive thus far and should get a big win here to propel him higher up the card.

Interest Level: 7/10Prediction: Apollo Crews wins.

Tom:

ALRIGHT, LET’S GO. I’ve not watched any NXT since the last TakeOver show so I feel VERY prepared to comment on all this. How have things been going for Crews? Pretty well? Same for Tyler Breeze? Cool, cool. I’m sure these guys will both do just fine, nothing more, nothing less.

Interest Level: 5/10Prediction: Apollo Crews wins.

Dana Brooke vs. Asuka

Joey:

Dana Brooke is terrible. (Sorry, Tom.) Asuka is very good. Hopefully they reach a middle ground where it’s at least okay. Asuka has to get the big win here. It sucks her match isn’t with Emma instead.

Interest Level: 5/10Prediction: Asuka wins.

Tom:

Joey mate, Dana Brooke is MOSTLY OKAY. She’s more good than she is bad, at least. This Asuka girl, I tell you what, she seems to be pretty good. I’m sure this will be p. decent.

Interest Level: 7/10Prediction: Asuka wins.

Tim:

I went with a nice eggplant color for my name. Spicing things up a bit? Do you like it? Leave comments underneath to let us know. We really care about your feedback. Like and subscribe.

Tom, man. Dana Brooke has a long way to go. You’re out of your damned mind and probably need to take a nap. Asuka’s first WWE match, though. That’s exciting!

Since I’m already here I’ll just post this picture of country music legend Randy Travis someone saved onto the computer at my workplace for some reason. Look at this maniac.

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Everybody loves binary decisions, especially wrestling fans! In This Or That, we’ve forced ourselves to choose between two options that relate to wrestling.

Over four questions, @TimWelcomed, @JoeySplashwater and @TomBlargh will have to choose one of two options and give their reasoning on each of their choices. You can then vote on which one you’d choose, giving you the false impression that you’re somehow involved and we care about your opinion chance to join the conversation!

Bigger athlete in wrestling?

Who would you rather see Kevin Owens toss off a stage?

Who would you rather see star in a WWE film?

Big E – 83%, Fandango – 17%

Did you like the finish to John Cena vs. Seth Rollins at Summerslam: Yes or No?

Controversial finishes.

Tim:

I love a good laugh but this was complete bullshit. This was supremely WCW of them. This ending seemed like something Hogan would’ve came up with when he arrived to the building and saw he was booked to lose clean. I have mixed feelings on Jon Stewart but he’s usually very likable in the WWE atmosphere. I know he likes the product and seems to genuinely enjoy being there so I wanted to like this but I could not do that. This was Seth Rollins’ best singles match since joining the main roster. It was something he desperately needed after all of this time playing (a very good) weasel-like champion. This ending stopped that performance from ever getting the amount of recognition it deserved.

I know they still want to protect Cena but are they so out of new ways to pull that off that this is the best they could come up with? It was nonsense. Don’t get me wrong, the idea of Jon Stewart being an aging *clears throat* “smart mark” type who doesn’t like change is a GREAT idea and he can do it well but don’t just throw that into a big match because you can’t figure out how to end it. Fuck that. He’s not even going to be around a lot. Where could this even possibly go that would be worth that ending? Nowhere. This was cheap.

No.

Joey:

My WOE brothers have strong opinions on both sides and I’m just stuck in the middle. At the live show, it was hilarious and the crowd’s reaction to it made it a beautiful moment. On the other side, it really wastes the next level star making performance of Seth Rollins as no one is talking about how tremendous he was on that night. The rational the next night is what soured me on it. I automatically like Jon Stewart less for trying to protect that jerk Ric Flair’s title record. I could see myself being for it in any scenario but Flair love so I’m giving this a big NO. Team T-Man.

NO

Tom:

Get a load of these two fucking MARKS. Yeah, I said it! I SAID IT LOUD. Here’s what wrestling is meant to be: a great fucking laugh. I was at Summerslam live and in person and I laughed a LOT at “Old” Jon Stewart taking out “Big” John Cena. Imagine that finish being pitched backstage, imagine them all around the table saying “yep, that’s the one”. Imagine the look on Rollins’ face when he realises the finish of the biggest win of his career ties directly into the crazy political leanings of Vince Jr. Imagine what the fuck Jon Stewart must have been thinking. It was GREAT. It was WRESTLING. It’s PURE, UNADULTERATED WRESTLING, and I accuse anyone who didn’t like it of being unable to handle the banter. THE ATTITUDE ERA IS BACK!!!!

Also, if you vote ‘no’ on this then please let me know ASAP so I can block and report you on Twitter dot com.

NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn came to Barclays Center and these humans attended.

@TJHawke411 and @JoeySplashwater somehow tempted the gods of wrestling karma into getting sick seats to NXT. Both considered it the greatest wrestling experience of their lives and will share their memories along with any new thoughts after watching it on replay. TJ is using the star rating system and Joey is using the Brad Ward rating system.

Support TJ Hawke by checking out Free Wrestling for great legally free wrestling and 411Mania for wrestling reviews.

Support Joey by continuously clicking refresh on this page and by watching Girl Meets World on Netflix so he feels less guilty about pirating Season 1.

Welcome to NXT

TJ:

TakeOver: Brooklyn was actually my first live WWE show as an adult, and it was an eye-opening experience. I know it sounds condescending as hell, but the people-watching that you cannot help but engage in while you are surrounded by the wonderful characters of the WWE Universe is truly next level. That was quickly remedied once we got into the building because we got to sit in the section with the family and guests of the wrestlers! Most of them seemed quite lovely and contained endearingly-high levels of excitement to see their friends and family in the ring. This change in surroundings removed the possibilities of an unpleasant fan experience harming the show. Success!

Joey:

I went back and forth on whether to attend TakeOver: Brooklyn or ROH Field of Honor 2. Around the time the double main event was announced for NXT, I made the decision to attend this especially since it was in my “home arena” about 10 minutes away and there was a very special feel around it. I made a great decision. After being in this arena nearly 20 times for various events, I’ve never been located anywhere but the highest level. Somehow our seats were the best view in the entire arena, second row ringside around a bunch of lovely people. The experience of getting in the venue and finding our seats was already amazing.

Full Sail is booing this preview.

Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Tyler Breeze

Joey:

The idea of Jushin Thunder Liger making his WWE debut this late into his legendary career in front of a sold out arena is pretty cool. I think the atmosphere will make this match very good and it could end up being the most memorable moment of the night.

Interest Level: 7/10Prediction: Tyler Breeze wins.

Tim:

Seeing Jushin Liger wrestle at a WWE event is pretty exciting to me. I’ve always been a huge fan of him so this is probably one of the biggest reasons for me to watch. I can enjoy Tyler Breeze from time to time so yeah, bring it on. I’m pretty interested in seeing these two square off in this environment.

Interest Level: 7/10Prediction: Tyler Breeze wins.

Tom:

Sure, okay, alright. These guys are on opposite ends of their careers, and as a result, I think there’s a limit to just how good this’ll be. Like, neither guy is really capable of much more than a pretty good singles match right now – Liger’s great matches are all behind him and Breeze’s are all in the future (or at least hopefully they are). Liger in a WWE ring is a fun novelty though, and a nice amount of silliness in Breeze’s entrance should make this enjoyable.